Report: Walgreens campaign highlights company’s innovative history

NEW YORK — A new Walgreens campaign to the tune of John Fogerty’s "Down on the Corner" from GSD&M is hitting a 30-second primetime spot near you. The campaign highlights Walgreens’ long history of innovation, "from inventing the first chocolate malt to creating a nonprofit pharmacy for our troops. … Walgreens has been innovating for more than 100 years, and we’re just getting started."

"What we’re trying to do is speak to the innovations that have been a part of the brand since Charles Walgreen started a company back in 1901," Nancy Ryan, SVP and group account director at the agency, told Marketing Daily in a report published on Saturday. "What we found is that Walgreens didn’t get the credit for these innovations. When we took this work into testing, consumers were very interested in how Walgreens did these things."

Cholesterol levels among youth see decline

CHICAGO — In a study involving more than 16,000 U.S. children and adolescents, there has been a decrease in average total cholesterol levels over the past two decades, although almost 1-in-10 subjects had elevated total cholesterol in the 2007-2010 period, according to a study published in the Aug. 8 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

"The process of [hardening of the arteries] begins during childhood and is associated with … high concentrations of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (non-HDL-C), and triglycerides, and low concentrations of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C)," according to background information in the article. "For more than 20 years, primary prevention of coronary heart disease has included strategies intended to improve overall serum lipid concentrations among youths."

Researchers found that among youths ages 6 to 19 years between 1988-1994 and 2007-2010, there was a decrease in average total cholesterol from 165 mg/dL to 160 mg/dL. Between 1988-1994 and 2007-2010, there also was a decrease in prevalence among youths ages 6 to 19 years of elevated total cholesterol from 11.3% to 8.1%. In 2007-2010, 22% of youths had either a low HDL-C level or high non-HDL-C, which was lower than the 27.2% in 1988-1994.

"Between 1988-1994 and 2007-2010, a favorable trend in serum lipid concentrations was observed among youths in the United States but adverse lipid profiles continue to be observed among youths," noted Brian Kit of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and lead researcher. "For example, in 2007-2010, slightly more than 20% of children aged 9 to 11 years had either a low HDL-C or high non-HDL-C concentration, which, according to the most recent cardiovascular health guidelines for children and adolescents, indicates a need for additional clinical evaluation."

FDA accepts Teva contraceptive pill application

FRAZER, Pa. — The Food and Drug Administration is reviewing a regulatory application from Teva for a contraceptive drug, the company said Monday.

Teva Women’s Health, part of Israeli drug maker Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, announced the FDA’s acceptance of its application for Quartette (levonorgestrel/ethinyl estradiol and ethinyl estradiol), which the company called the first ascending-dose, extended regimen oral contraceptive for preventing pregnancy.

"Quartette is an ascending-dose regimen oral contraceptive intended for prevention of pregnancy," Teva Women’s Health R&D senior director of clinical affairs Nancy Ricciotti said. "We looked at when and why breakthrough bleeding occurs and designed Quartette to have less disruptive, unscheduled bleeding."

Breakthrough bleeding is a side effect that often occurs in women taking birth control pills, increasing during the first few months of treatment, and is one of the reasons why a large number of women discontinue extended regimens.

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